Help With Reseeding My Lawn

My lawn is uneven, sparse, and full of weeds. I want to care for my lawn organically, but I feel like I need to start from scratch, so I'm looking for help on how to get rid of my current grass, level out the ground, get the right amount of topsoil, reseed, and maintain it properly. I know this is a tall order, but I'm looking for some direction. Help! Thanks!

More info needed. Where are you? What kind of grass do you have and what kind do you want? The permaculture question must
be asked: do you really want grass? Many times grass is not the best option. Do you have sun and if so, how much a day?

I am located in Royal Oak, MI, so we have the four seasons. I do want grass, and grass will grow well here if cared for properly. Most of our problem is our neighbors let their weeds grow and seed, which infested our yard last year.

Scroll down to the "Lawn Care" topic. There is more info than you can use.

great - thanks!

you will be planting a cool season grass or mix like bluegrass and fescue. You will have a hard time establishing the new grass before the heat of summer arrives. Last year I seeded grass already a month ago here in Colorado. It sprouted and then as the heat increased, much of it died, and I fought all summer. re-seeding. trying this trick or that. Fact is the cool season grasses should be seeded in early fall. The ground is still more than warm enough, but the daytime temps wont crush the new growth. After I had learned about the grass, I seeded some more areas last fall. It came up quickly, filled in nicely before the winter set in and is healthy and green already this year. Everything in the "lawn care" section is spot on. Your spotty lawn was very likely a result of watering too frequently, and not deeply enough. Ive been on the once a week, one inch at a time for a few years, the front lawn is completely awesome, 99% weed free. get a cheap rain gauge to ensure you are putting down one inch, once a week. It takes a few hours, but actually uses less water than throwing water on it for 2 minutes every day.

Rich,

Thanks for the feedback. I have a very large tree in my front yard that generally leaves most of the yard in shade. Given that, do you think I'd be allright seeding now, or should I still wait. As for the watering, I have an in-ground sprinkler system. How do I guage an inch of water using those kind of sprinklers? where do I put the guage, etc.?

Well hopefully the tree won't give "too dense" a shade, but it will help the baby grass from cooking. Some of my best turf is where it gets afternoon shade. Measuring an inch of water with *any* sprinkler (even mother nature) is by putting a perpendicular walled dish, or rain gauge or whatever-you-have-laying-around-the-house-that-can-hold-water in the area you want to measure, then measuring with a ruler the amount of water it collected. Easy-peasy!